Two a penny

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National’s senior whip Nathan Guy has been appointed as Internal Affairs Minister to replace Richard Worth, Prime Minister John Key said today.

Mr Guy will be a minister outside Cabinet and take up Dr Worth’s portfolios of Archives NZ, National Library and associate justice minister.

Maurice Williamson, who temporarily looked after Dr Worth’s portfolios after he lost his ministerial positions, will retain Land Information. .

He was junior whip from November 2006 and has been senior whip since February last year.

Mr Guy is the MP for Otaki and first entered Parliament in 2005.

“He has proven himself to be an able senior whip and member of the National Party caucus,” Mr Key said.

Mr Key said he looked forward to welcoming Mr Guy to the executive.

“I was rapt to receive a phone call from the prime minister offering me the opportunity to become a minister outside Cabinet, which of course I accepted.

Mr Guy said the appointment was a huge honour.

The transport role is a new position and as a local MP he has come out strongly in favour of the Transmission Gully motorway route between Wellington and the Kapiti Coast.”

Mr Guy said he was looking forward to the internal affairs role and other associate jobs, though he did know his delegations yet.

The Wellington to Otaki road is one of the designated routes, but the Transmission Gully motorway is not defined as a solution to the region’s traffic congestion.

Mr Guy said he believed the transport appointment was a sign that the portfolio was a large one and Mr Key wanted to make progress on the designated routes of national significance. .

“There is a lot at stake for the Otaki electorate. but it is just one area around the country. .

A second allegation was also made against Dr Worth by a member of the Labour Party.”

Mr Guy gained the jobs after Dr Worth resigned as an MP late on Friday after earlier being asked to resign as a minister when it emerged that he was under police investigation over allegations of a sexual nature involving a Korean business woman.

In a public statement she also said Dr Worth offered her jobs in his ministerial capacity.

The woman involved, Neelam Choudary, alleged that between November and February, Dr Worth sent dozens of text messages, some sexually explicit, and called her numerous times.

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Tough choices in ‘Team of the Week’

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By DUNCAN JOHNSTONE

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Rugbyheaven

Last updated 09:51 30/03/2009
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Ma’a Nonu in action against the Lions.

The Highlanders celebrate Matt Berquist’s try against the Bulls.

Todd Clever scores for the Lions against the Hurricanes.

Jamie Mackintosh is tackled just short of the line.

Jamie Mackintosh is tackled just short of the line. .

Keven Mealamu tackles hard against the Waratahs.

Ali Williams tries to tackle Luke Burgess.

A dejected Blues captain Keven Mealamu and coach Pat Lam.

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– Successful stretch for NZ S14 teams –

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S14 teams for week five

Our Super 14 team of week

Bulls’ stars likely to play Crusaders

Frustration with some Super 14 refereeing

Our team of the week

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There is no lack of contenders for the latest New Zealand team of the week after a solid weekend’s work from the Kiwi franchises in round seven.

The Blues were the only side to lose as a bit of New Zealand presence came to the points table.

The Crusaders showed true grit in edging the Stormers. But in times when the finger is being pointed at the Super 14 as being a dull affair in 2009, we are going for some flamboyance in our latest side and there was no lack of that in the way the Chiefs, Highlanders and Hurricanes won their matches to dominate our star XV.

Fullback is a toss-up between emerging Highlander Israel Dagg and Chiefs veteran Mils Muliaina.

Dagg backed up last week’s double with a late try in the stunning upset of the Bulls in Palmerston North. He runs the ball back strongly and his kicking game is on song. This young man is examining more and more comfortable in his surroundings.

But no one can underestimate Muliaina’s contribution to this remarkable turnaround by the Chiefs. He scored two tries himself in the big win over the Reds in Brisbane and organised the Chiefs’ attack from the back to get our nod.

His efforts certainly helped those around him. That’s why Sitiveni Sivivatu gets the left wing jersey. He was only on for just over 10 minutes. But he scored twice and should have had another but for an officiating balls-up. The guy is in magic form and now it’s only a shoulder injury that is holding him back.

There wasn’t much to celebrate in the Blues’ loss to the Tahs but we loved the effort of Anthony Tuitavake on the right wing. He scored a magical try. After spending much of the season at centre, he looked good value with a bit of space out wide and that finishing flourish earns him the No 14 slot.

Centre is a tough call this week with internationals Conrad Smith and Richard Kahui building form nicely as is Highlanders No 13 Jason Shoemark.

The Hurricanes got themselves into a heck of a battle with the Lions on the high veldt and Smith’s early double strike certainly set up this win. Take a bow Conrad.

Ma’a Nonu did the business alongside Smith as this pairing show the value of their long association. It’s enough for Nonu to edge worthy efforts from Daniel Bowden (Highlanders) and Callum Bruce who has been a quiet achiever in the star-studded Chiefs backline.

There’s a similar tight tussle at 10 where Steve Donald (Chiefs), Piri Weepu (Hurricanes) and Matt Berquist (Highlanders) directed their teams to crucial wins.

It’s hard to go past Donald though. The Chiefs backline has been outrageous over the last two weekends. Donald got things humming in Brisbane with a stunning solo try to open the floodgates. His goalkicking and field kicking were spot-on too.

The All Blacks selectors have got a job on their hands at halfback now that Brendon Leonard is firing up. He’s a ball of energy and his bullet pass has freed the Chiefs backline. But is there a more gritty character than Jimmy Cowan? He sparked the improving Highlanders’ attack with several strong runs and was there at the end to snuff out some dangerous revivals from the Bulls.

Sione Lauaki holds on to the No 8 jersey again with another barnstorming effort although Rodney So’oialo’s work rate in difficult circumstances in Johannesburg didn’t go unnoticed.

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The loose forwards, as usual, are a competitive area.

The super-consistent Adam Thomson (Highlanders) heads off Liam Messam (Chiefs) and Kieran Read (Crusaders) for our blindside role and Karl Lowe stepped up when he was needed for the Canes at No 7 in the absence of All Black Scott Waldrom.

Hayden Triggs (Highlanders) got geed up by his emotional homecoming in Palmerston North to produce arguably his biggest Super 14 effort. But in a close tussle he got edged by his team mate Tom Donnelly for one of our locking spots. The other goes to Brad Thorn (Crusaders) who was at the heart of the Crusaders’ haggle with the Stormers.

Clint Newland stood up to the test of the biggest pack in the championship at tighthead for the Highlanders and Jamie Mackintosh’s return to full action alongside him was highly energetic against the Bulls.

The same can be said of Hurricanes hooker Dane Coles who got through a ton of work in Jo’burg to shadow All Blacks Keven Mealamu, the Blues’ skipper and new Super rugby centurion, and Hika Elliott who made the most of a rare start for the Chiefs.

Here’s our team of the week for round 7 of the Super 14:

15 Mils Muliaina (Chiefs), 14 Anthony Tuitavake (Blues), 13 Conrad Smith (Hurricanes), 12 Ma’a Nonu (Hurricanes), 11 Sitiveni Sivivatu (Chiefs), 10 Stephen Donald (Chiefs), 9 Jimmy Cowan (Highlanders), 8 Sione Lauaki (Chiefs), 7 Karl Lowe (Hurricanes), 6 Adam Thomson (Highlanders), 5 Tom Donnelly (Highlanders), 4 Brad Thorn (Crusaders), 3 Clint Newland (Highlanders), 2 Dane Coles (Hurricanes), 1 Jamie Mackintosh (Highlanders).

Who do you think is missing from this team or have we got it right? below.

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All Black reveals heartache over son

By DAVID LONG – Sunday, 22 February 2009

ALL Blacks star Mils Muliaina has spoken of the emotional turmoil he and wife Hayley went through when their son was born with a hole in his heart.
Mils had stayed in Auckland for the birth of his first child, Max, in November when the rest of the national rugby team left for a four-test tour of the UK and Ireland plus a Bledisloe Cup match in Hong Kong.
But medical staff planning corrective surgery on Max's heart told Mils he would have time to take part in the tests before the operation.
The 68-test hero a vital member of the touring side immediately put plans to join his teammates on hold when he was told of the youngster's condition.
"If he needed to go in for an emergency operation they would need to get him stable for two to five days beforehand, so that would have given me plenty of time to come back from playing for the All Blacks.
"We had a talk with the doctors and the biggest thing was that he wasn't going to deteriorate overnight," Mils told . The All Blacks jersey is so precious and you don't ever want let it down or miss out on going on a tour.
"It's a pretty hard thing. .
"The defining moment was the doctor saying he wasn't going to deteriorate overnight and rather than me waiting and worrying about him I should go over (to Europe)."
Max had open-heart surgery at Auckland's Starship Children's Hospital over the Christmas holidays. She thought it was best that I go over and play for the All Blacks and then come back and we'll have the operation.
Mils and Hayley were recently given the all-clear over Max's health and the star fullback can now relax enough to reflect on the last few months. Doctors placed a piece of felt over the hole, which his heart will eventually grow over. I came back from the tour and we were in the ward at Starship over Christmas and he had his operation," Mils said.
"It was pretty tough. I look back now and I just can't believe how close it was back then how I felt and how hard it was.
"We were very fortunate. He had a check-up a couple of weeks ago and he's humming.
"Now he's a bubbly little kid and everything's so rosy.
"It was the hardest decision I've ever had to make to go on that tour. He's done really well and we're pretty stoked about that."
Mils says becoming a dad has been a life-changing experience for him. We came away with the Grand Slam again and hopefully, when Max is older, he'll look back at that tour and have something to be proud of his dad for going on. It's great for me," he said, beaming. It's great for me," he said, beaming.
"I really get excited about going home, seeing the little fella there. It puts a different perspective on life and makes you grow up a lot quicker."

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Police warning after abduction attempt

Thursday, 19 February 2009

North Shore police are warning parents to be on the look out for a man who attempted to snatch an 11-year-old girl from the street today.
The North Shore Child Abuse Team are investigating the attempted abduction of the 11 year old in Beach Haven as she was walking to school on Fordham Street.
A man described as Maori or Polynesian in his late teens approached the girl from behind in a white Honda Civic, jumped out and grabbed hold of her.
Inspector Jacqueline Whittaker is appealing for any sightings of the man who is approximately six foot tall, and was wearing a white and black cap with thick white stripes, baggy jeans and a green and white basketball type shirt.
The girl struggled free and ran to school where she immediately raised the alarm. .
His car was a white Honda Civic two door hatchback with a dent in the driver's door.
People are asked to call the North Shore Child Abuse Team with any information on Ph (09) 477 5000.

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Massive quake at Kermadecs

– Thursday, 19 February 2009

A powerful 7. .53am at a depth of 36km, the USGS said on its website.
The quake, located 304km northeast of Raoul Island in the Kermadec Island chain, struck at 10.
Conservation Department spokeswoman Louise Skelton said it had five workers and four volunteers on the island.
The Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre said the quake posed no destructive tsunami threat, but cautioned that earthquakes of this size sometimes generate destructive waves within 100 km of the epicentre.
Further updates on their situation were expected this afternoon.
Communications with the island were patchy, but it was believed the workers had managed to get a message through this morning and all were "fine", she said.
Ms Skelton said the chances of another eruption were slim, as they were not normally linked to seismic activity.
Conservation worker Mark Kearney, 33, was killed in a volcanic eruption on the island in 2006, while collecting lake level and temperature data for volcanic monitoring following an increase in seismic activity.
– with

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Lifeboat fault delays ferry passengers

Thursday, 05 February 2009

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LESS THAN PLAIN SAILING: More than 100 passengers, including Dave Leuthart of New Plymouth (inset), were bumped off a sailing of the Aratere Cook Strait ferry as a safety precaution after a routine drill went wrong.

Morethan 100 passengers were bumped off a sailing of the Aratere Cook Strait ferry as a safety precaution after a routine drill went wrong in Wellington Harbour and the ship lost one of its lifeboats.
Staff were holding a safety drill yesterday when a coupling broke as a 110-seat lifeboat was being hoisted back on board.
Passengers were delayed for more than two hours.
Maritime New Zealand was alerted by the Interislander ferry company and passenger numbers were cut by 115 to a level that could safely be catered for by the remaining liferafts.
The malfunction meant the lifeboat had to be left in Wellington for repairs, so the ferry could not sail with all its 260 booked passengers. This meant the remaining lifeboat could not be used either because of safety regulations.
Maritime NZ general manager John Mansell said the lifeboat was damaged during a routine crew exercise and had to be taken off the ferry for repairs. People board them and are lifted down to the water.
"There are six life rafts launched by crane on the ferry."
The ferry, scheduled to have left at 2pm, eventually sailed at 4. They have a capacity of 150 people in total. .15pm with 150 passengers.
The cable problem happened as attempts were made to hoist the lifeboat back on board.
Interislander spokesperson Nigel Parry said the quick-release mechanism on the lifeboat had not malfunctioned during the drill.
The 115 passengers affected by the malfunction were given fare refunds, and many were also booked on the next available sailing for free. Crew members on the lifeboat were uninjured.
New Plymouth company director David Leuthart was one of a group of Taranaki off-road bikers who were embarking on a week-long "boys' trip' of the South Island. They headed south on an Arahura sailing later last night. It's a poor show really," he said. "You'd think this should all be routine maintenance stuff for these guys.
The Aratere's 10-year history sailing the Cook Strait has been a troubled one, including power failures and an unscheduled turn in Wellington Harbour.
The repaired lifeboat was expected to be returned to the ferry late last night ready for an early-morning sailing.

.

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David Kirk now half Australian

The Tuesday, 27 January 2009

The man who held the William Webb Ellis Trophy aloft to celebrate New Zealand's only Rugby World Cup win is now half Australian.
David Kirk took up Australian citizenship at a ceremony yesterday Australia Day. He has lived in Australia for 10 years. He would hold dual New Zealand and Australian citizenship.
"It just seemed like the right time," he said. My heart, my emotion, my commitment is of course to New Zealand, particularly in rugby of course.
"I grew up in New Zealand."
Mr Kirk was born in Wellington, raised in Palmerston North, and later trained as a doctor. Muddied and bloodied, he held up the William Webb Ellis trophy in what has become awell knownKiwi image.
In 1987 he captained the All Blacks to their World Cup win. He entered the business world and in 2005 became chief executive at until resigning in December.
After quitting rugby, Mr Kirk became a Rhodes Scholar and adviser to former prime minister Jim Bolger. "There are a lot of similarities between New Zealanders and Australians.
His wife and three sons are Australian citizens. . In many ways I think of myself as an Australasian

.
David Kirk now half Australian

The Tuesday, 27 January 2009

The man who held the William Webb Ellis Trophy aloft to celebrate New Zealand's only Rugby World Cup win is now half Australian.
David Kirk took up Australian citizenship at a ceremony yesterday Australia Day. He has lived in Australia for 10 years. He would hold dual New Zealand and Australian citizenship.
"It just seemed like the right time," he said. My heart, my emotion, my commitment is of course to New Zealand, particularly in rugby of course.
"I grew up in New Zealand."
Mr Kirk was born in Wellington, raised in Palmerston North, and later trained as a doctor. Muddied and bloodied, he held up the William Webb Ellis trophy in what has become awell knownKiwi image.
In 1987 he captained the All Blacks to their World Cup win. He entered the business world and in 2005 became chief executive at until resigning in December.
After quitting rugby, Mr Kirk became a Rhodes Scholar and adviser to former prime minister Jim Bolger. "There are a lot of similarities between New Zealanders and Australians.
His wife and three sons are Australian citizens. . In many ways I think of myself as an Australasian

.
Surfer drowns at Colac Bay

By EVAN HARDING and BEN HEATHER – Monday, 26 January 2009

A Riverton man has drowned while out on his surfboard at Colac Bay.
Jeremy Pierce said his 26-year-old brother Myles, who had diabetes, drowned about 100m offshore after going into what was believed to be a diabetic coma on Saturday afternoon.
Mr Pierce believed Myles had become fatigued and his diabetes had overcome him, having earlier spent about three hours surfing at Colac Bay before paddling over to watch the mammal playing in the ocean. . A passing fisherman plucked the brothers from the water, police said.
Mr Pierce, when alerted that his brother appeared to be unwell, swam out to him from the boat ramp but he was dead when he got there, he said. His mother, Julie Guise, owns The Pavilion restaurant cafe-bar at Colac Bay near where her son drowned.
Myles' death had come as a massive shock to his family and friends.
Meanwhile, a young man nearly drowned in Lake Wanaka on Saturday morning he was pulled from the water just as his head was going under, and taken to the Wanaka Medical Centre.
Senior Sergeant Richard McPhail, of Invercargill, said Mr Pierce's death had been referred to the coroner. Some were not wearing lifejackets.
On Lake Wakatipu, a Kawarau Jet boat had to fish several kayakers out of the water on Saturday afternoon.

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Kiwi freed on $26,000 bond

and DEIDRE MUSSEN Tuesday, 20 January 2009

A Kiwiracing car driver arrested in Thailand on drugs charges has returned to Christchurch after paying a $26,000 bond, a rare break from the country's notoriously tough stance on drugs.
Peter Scharmach, 44, could face up to 20 years in jail after police arrested him in Phuket on December 13 and charged with possession of drugs with the intent to sell. .
He vehemently denied the charges, Mr Keawpharouk said.
Scharmach's Thai lawyer, Siwadol Keawpharouk, said German-born Scharmach paid 500,000 baht (about NZ$26,000) for his bail bond and left Thailand on December 30." Scharmach, who owns a property in Christchurch and is the sole director of two New Zealand companies, including a mail order business, returned here over New Year, before heading to Germany.
"Public prosecutors can let him go to do his business but he must come back to Thailand in time [for a court hearing].
He had been in Thailand for only six days when police arrested him.
It was expected the case would now begin in the middle of next month, Mr Keawpharouk said. His case was due before Thai courts last Tuesday, but was delayed because police were waiting for test results on the drugs allegedly found with him.
"He didn't really go into it too much.
Fellow Kiwi racing driver Eddie Bell, who competed with Scharmach in the 2007 Mini Challenge, said he had spoken to him on his return to New Zealand."
A photograph of Scharmach in custody after his arrest shows money, cellphones and bags of drugs laid out on a table in front of him.
"I know that he's a bit upset that it's been broadcast the way it was and it sounded like it was all taken out of context.
Associates have described him as a "man of mystery" and a "very wealthy" globetrotter, who also had business links in Australia.
Associates have described him as a "man of mystery" and a "very wealthy" globetrotter, who also had business links in Australia.
A high profile case would also be harder to resolve though bribes, an otherwise commonplace practice, she said. Foreigners caught with drugs were often treated more harshly, particularly if there was an attempt to sell them."
Wellington woman Phyllis Tarawhiti spent 11 years in a Thai prison after being sentenced to life imprisonment in 1995 when she was caught with $4 million of heroin strapped to her body.
"Once it gets to a high profile, confrontational situation, it will be followed through [the courts]. Their jails are awful," Ms York said.
"You really don't want to have go to jail there.